"These are good, fun family programs and should be taken in
the right spirit," he said. "I have not seen any evidence of
an occult following or that teenagers take them seriously."

But the Archbishop is concerned about television playing with
dark forces as a means of creating controversy or making money.

"The occult is not something any community plays with or makes
money out of," he said. "The forces we are dealing with here
are extremely powerful and to play with them is to begin to
gamble with the future of civilised society.

"What is particularly worrying is that the exploration of
this territory is occurring among young people, many of whom
will not be aware of the strength and power of the forces they
are engaging with."

The WA co-ordinator of the Pagan Alliance, a retired teacher
known only as Michelin, backed the Archbishop.

"I thoroughly agree with him,' she said.

"These programs must only be treated as entertainment.

"Young people must be aware that they cannot go round putting
spells and curses on others. They will come back and bite you."

University of WA psychology professor Kevin Durkin said parents
should be aware of what children were viewing.

But he said: "I wonder how strong the evidence is that people
suffer from problems after watching these kind of shows.

"I doubt that most young girls in Perth believe they can summon
up the devil after watching a few television shows," he said.

Archbishop Hickey said that in the past three years, two women
had told him of their struggles to break free of covens to which
they were introduced as children. One had broken away only at
great personal cost.

"She was attacked more than once by members concerned she
would spill the beans," he said. "These women have told me that
if priests hear stories of covens and witchcraft to believe
them because they happen.

"I hear about coven meetings that occur and stories of child
abuse and sexual practices."